Irrigators or spray devices



June 5, 1962 H, w. WALDEN ETAL 3,037,505

IRRIGATORS 0R SPRAY DEVICES;

Filed Jan. 15, 1958 76 V9 1/ 25 RICHAlfi) H. WALW WVENEORS e p1,, nry al45 may United States Patent 3,037,505 IRRIGATORS OR SPRAY DEVICES HenryW. Walden, New York, and Richard H. Walden, Plandorne, N. said Henry W.Walden assignor to said Richard H. Walden Filed Jan. 13, 1958, Ser. No.708,674 1 Claim. (Cl. 128--244) This invention relates to an irrigationor spray device, such as is used for the injection and distribution ofmedicaments, antiseptics, cleansing preparations and other materials inliquid, mist, spray or in other forms into body cavities. An example ofthe type of device to which the present invention relates will be foundin our co-pending application Serial No. 653,462, filed April 17, 1957,now Patent No. 2,924,218.

It is one of the objects of the invention to provide a device of thischaracter by means of which the preparation to be injected will beforced into the body cavity so that the preparation will reach all partsof the cavity for complete distribution therein. It is an object of theinvention to provide an improved means by which a spray container may becoupled to a spraying tube and the flow of the material from thecontainer and into the tube be completely under the control of the user.

It is an object of the invention to provide means by which a spray tubemay be readily and detachably secured to a speculum of knownconstruction and to provide means by which such a tube may be coupled toa spray container.

With these and other objects to be hereinafter set forth in view, wehave devised the arrangement of parts to be described and moreparticularly pointed out in the claim appended hereto.

In the accompnaying drawing, wherein an illustrative embodiment of theinvention is disclosed,

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a portion of a speculum of knownconstruction, showing an embodiment of the improved spray deviceattached thereto.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the spray device;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the spray device;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view, with parts in section, of a speculumwith another embodiment of the spray device incorporated in it;

FIG. 5 is a detail view of one end of the speculum of FIG. 4, showinghow the valve stem of a spray container is fitted into it in positionfor the spraying operation;

FIG. 6 is a top plan view of one of the jaws or blades of the speculumof FIG. 1, showing the slot in the blade in which a portion of the headof the spray tube is fitted;

FIG. 7 shows another manner in which a wall-encircled valve stem iscoupled to a spray tube; and

FIG. 8 shows a manner in which a valve stem of the flexible type iscoupled to a spray tube.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 6, there is therein shown a speculum of knownconstruction, and of the type employed for dilating or spreading thewalls of a body opening such as the vagina, for medical examination ortreatment. The speculum of known construction, includes a pair of jawsor blades, shown respectively at 1 and 2, which are pivotally connectedtogether at 3, whereby they may be either brought together for insertioninto the body orifice or spread apart thereafter, which separation ofthe jaws or blades is partially shown in FIG. 1.

The blade or jaw 1 is provided with a lateral extension 4 through whicha threaded rod 40 extends, said rod receiving the nut 41 for maintainingthe jaws or blades in desired angular relationship for examinationpurposes.

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At the rear end of the jaw or blade 1 is provided a central,longitudinal slot 42, and adapted for removable fitment in this slot isthe head 6 of a spray tube 5. The head 6 is formed with a top portion 7and lower flanges 9, providing a groove 8 with which the edges of theslot 42 engage. The spray tube extends through the head 6 and emerges atthe rear end thereof, as shown at 10.

The manner in which the spray tube 5 is fitted in position on the blade1 of the speculum, is clearly shown in FIG. 1, wherein it will be seenthat the head 6 has its groove 8 engaged with the slot 42 by sliding thehead 6 on the jaw or blade 1 from the rear thereof. When in position asabove stated, the tube 5 will be carried by the jaw or blade 1 and willproject forwardly between the blades with its front or outlet end 44situated near the forward ends of the jaws or blades 1 and 2. This ar-"rangement is such that the spray tube may be attached to the jaw orblade 1 either while the speculum is in inserted position or while thesame is removed from the patient.

The spray container from which the liquid, powdered or other material isinjected, consists of a bottle, capsule or other container of knownconstruction, a portion of which is shown at 11. These containers,except in the case of so-called squeeze bottles are usually closed by avalve that is operatively opened in several different ways. In the formshown in FIG. 1, the valve terminates in a flexible stem 13 projectingthrough a closure cap 12 and extending beyond the same. This valve stem13 is connected to the spray or siphon tube 14 that is located withinthe bottle. By pressure imposed sidewisely on the tip portion of thevalve stem 13, the valve may be opened and a portion of the contents ofthe container, and which are under pressure, will be ejected through thestem 13. It will also be obvious that the same effect,

i.e. opening of the valve, will be secured if the valve stem is heldstationary and the container is tilted or moved laterally.

In the construction shown in FIG. 1 the stem 13 is inserted into the endportion 10 of the spray tube 5 and when it is desired to spray theinside of the body orifice, the spray container 11 is used as a leverand is moved sidewisely, thus opening the valve of which the stem 13forms a part, and causing a portion of the contents of the container 11to be sprayed into the body orifice.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 4 is disclosed aspeculum having similarity to that disclosed in ourco-pendingapplication Serial No. 65 3,462. In FIG. 4 is shown a housing 15, whichmay be of substantially cylindrical form, and is provided at its forwardend with a disc-shaped or other suitably formed abutment 45, and with arear wall 46w. Located centrally of the rear wall and secured thereinand extending therethrough is one end of a spray tube 16 which extendsforwardly through the housing 15 and between the pivoted jaws or blades20 and 21. Secured on the spray tube 16 is a collar 17, and the pivotpins 18 and 19 for the respective jaws or blades 20 and 21 extendtherethrough and through the wall of the housing 15. Leaf springs 22 and23 are mounted on the collar 17 and these springs operate against therear extensions 22a and 23a of the jaws or blades to normally hold thejaws or blades in their closed or abutting position shown in FIG. 4. Therear extension 23a carries a finger-piece 24 and a similar finger-piece25 is carried by the rear extension 22a, these finger-pieces extendingthrough slots not shown, but provided in the wall of the housing 15. Thedescribed arrangement is such that by pressure imposed on thefinger-pieces 24 and 25, the jaws or blades 20 and 21 will be pivotallyspread apart.

The bottle or spray container 11 has its valve stem 13 inserted in therear end of the tube 16 as shown in FIG. 4, and by lateral or sidewisemovement of the bottle or container the valve of the same will be openedand part of the contents of the container will be sprayed through thetube.

As previously stated, containers of this character are provided withvalves of various kinds, one of which is opened as stated, by sidewisemovement of the flexible valve stem or by such movement of the containerrelatively to the valve stem. Another form of known valve is that bywhich the valve is opened by inward depression of the valve stem. Such acontainer is shown in FIG. 5. In the embodiment therein shown, the valvestem 13 must be depressed to open the valve of which it forms a part,and when it is inserted within the end of the spray tube 16 itencounters an abutment 27 which may be in the form of a shoulder withinthe tube 16. To open a valve of this type, the container is held in thehand and forced inwardly or in the direction of the arrows shown in FIG.5, and the pressure of the forward end of the valve stem 13 against theshoulder 27 will result in the opening of the valve and in the sprayingof part of the contents of the container into the body orifice. It is,of course, understood that this manipulation of the container forspraying will take place while the jaws or blades 20 and 21 aredistended by pressure imposed on the finger-pieces 24 and 25.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 7, the valve stem 13 isof the type that is operated by inward depression and the same is shownas being protectively surrounded by an annular wall 46 which may beprovided as a part of or instead of a secondary closure cap 47 fittedpermanently or otherwise, over the conventional closure cap 12. Thisannular wall 46 afiords protection for the valve stem, preventing itfrom being accidentally depressed during handling of the container andalso while coupling it to the spray tube of the speculum. In thisembodiment of the invention, the rear end of the spray tube 16 is shownas being located Within a recess 48 which is of a diametrical size as toenable the wall 46 to fit snugly but slidingly within it. The couplingof the container 12 to the spray tube 16 is attained by insertion of thewall 46 within the recess 48 and this is preferably only partly doneuntil the moment of injection is reached, whereupon the container ispushed inwardly; the end of the valve stem 13 will contact with the endof the spray tube 16, causing the valve stem to be depressed and thevalve opened and a part of the contents of the container to be sprayedthrough the tube 16 and out of the forward end of the same.

In FIG. 8 is shown another arrangement by which the valve stem 13 iscoupled to the spray tube 16. In this arrangement, the end portion ofthe valve stem is provided with screw threads 50 for threadableengagement with the threads 49 provided on the interior of the spraytube 16. With this construction the valve stem may be of the flexibletype which opens its valve by tilt or lateral movement of the stem orthe container of which it forms a part. This threaded stem arrangementmay also be employed when coupling the stem to the spraying tube withthe construction that employs an annular wall around the stem asindicated at 13 and 46 in FIG. 7.

Various other means may be employed for coupling the container to aspray tube, and the requisite of any such means is that the valve of thecontainer shall remain closed until it is desired that the injection ofsome of the contents shall occur, whereupon by movement, pressure orother force imposed on the container, its valve or other closure meansshall be opened and a portion of its contents injected into and throughthe spray tube.

We have herein suggested that the contents of the con tainer might beliquid and be under pressure, but it will be understood that thepowdered material, or other material that can be ejected in any form,such as in a spray or mist might be used in the containers withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention.

What we claim is:

A spray tube for detachable connection to the elongated narrow slot inthe rear end of one of a pair of pivotally connected blades of aspeculum, the blades being free from projections, in a manner to locatethe tube between the blades with its forward end located adjacent to thefront end of the blades and the rear end at the rear end of thespeculum, comprising a tube open at both ends and attached at the rearend to an elongated tubesupporting head having on opposite sides thereofnarrow slots engaging the sides of the elongated narrow slot of theblade over a sufiicient distance to hold the tube firmly on the blade ina friction fit, the top surface of the head exteriorly of the bladebeing smoothly contoured and free from projections.

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